Injured Hummels out for Bayern clash against Real

Mats Hummels will be a key absentee for Bayern Munich as the German champions prepare to meet Champions League winners Real Madrid in their quarter-final clash.

Although Hummels only played for ten minutes in Bayern 4-1 drubbing of Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, the German international appeared to suffer an ankle problem in Bayern’s Sunday’s training session and was forced to leave the pitch on a golf cart.After undergoing a medical examination to determine the extent of the problem, Hummels announced that he will miss the game at the Allianz Arena.

“Very sad to be out for at least the next week,” the former Dortmund player tweeted.

This meant that Bayern manager Carlo Ancelotti will have to rely on Jerome Boateng and Javi Martinez to hold Real Madrid off in their first leg encounter. Both played in Bayern’s 4-1 defeat of Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga on Saturday, as Manuel Neuer also remains doubtful after a foot injury kept him out for weeks.

However, Bayern received a boost in offensive strength, tweeting to welcome Thomas Muller back after the forward was sidelined briefly for a ankle injury.

As for Zinedine Zidane’s team, they will have to play without Pepe after the Portuguese central defender broke two ribs in their 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid during the weekend, while French defender Raphael Varane will also be missing through injury.